It was the fourth entry in a tired Hollywood action series
that brought him to the attention of western audiences, and Jet Li was the only
lethal weapon coming out of that particular soap opera with his reputation
intact. Since then, Li has made several wrong turns in Hollywood, but it’s good
to know his Asian film career continues to provide genuine crowd-pleasers.
A remake of Bruce Lee’s Fist of Fury sounds like a bad idea
on paper, but we are talking about Jet at the top of his game here. Gordon Chan
calls the shots, Yuen Woo-ping directs the action and Li beats down on anyone
and anything that gets in his way.
Fist of Legend opens with Chen Zhen (Jet Li) studying in
Japan. We learn that his homeland has been devastated by Japanese occupation,
and his once proud martial arts academy has fallen into disarray following the
death of its Master; he lost his life under suspicious circumstances against a
member of the Japanese Black Dragon Clan.
Chen Zhen returns home and challenges the killer to a fight,
and it’s not long before he realises that something is amiss. After that, Li
takes on both the world and its shadow, kicking and punching his way into
cinematic legend. If you want to know why Li is considered one of the greatest
action heroes in the world today, Fist of Legend is the best place to start.
Kurata Yasuaki joins him in battle, playing the part of Chen
Zhen’s teacher, and it’s their face-off that provides the film with its most
astonishing sequence. Li adopts several fighting styles throughout, utilising
props and weaponry while showcasing his undeniable athleticism and screen
prowess. Want to see Jet take on a swarm of Japanese fighters? We can do that.
Want to see Li battle his opponent wearing a blindfold? Guess we’ve got that
covered too.
Chan adds layers of depth to the mix, saddling Chen Zhen
with a Japanese love interest (Nakayma Shinobu) and touching on themes of
racial discrimination. It’s well intentioned but acts as padding; he’ll have to
try a lot harder if he wants to distract from the kick-ass carnage and fight
choreography. I doubt there will be many who remember Fist of Legend for its weak
attempts at sentiment. What they will remember, however, is a time when Jet Li
was the master of action cinema.
When he was considered a hero by half of Asia, before he
went rogue and Hollywood made him pretty much expendable. Once upon a time in
China Jet Li was the legend - the one - and this is your chance to discover the truth
for yourselves. When it comes to action cinema you can forget the dragon
emperor and the mummy, with Fist of Legend Jet Li proves himself the daddy of
them all. See what I did there? AW
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